How To Find Registered Practical Nurse
(RPN) Jobs In Canada
There are multiple types of nurses in Canada's healthcare system. Most
of them are RNs, or registered nurses, which is the most well-known
category in this profession; but there are also RPNs, which are
registered practical nurses, and this article is all about them.
Registered Practical Nurses In Canada
In Canada, registered practical nurse (RPN) is a designation used in the
province of Ontario to identify nurses that work under the supervision
of registered nurses (RNs) in a healthcare setting. In the rest of Canada
and other parts of North America, these workers are known as licensed
practical nurses (LPNs) even though the definition of this designation is
exactly the same.
RPNs usually have direct contact with patients and are assigned duties
and responsibilities that vary depending on their workplace. However,
most of these nurses perform general nursing tasks such as
administering medication, keeping patient records updated, monitoring
vital signs, taking samples for testing, and more. They usually report
their findings to an RN or other higher-level healthcare workers, such as
doctors.
The biggest difference between RPNs and RNs is their academic
credentials, as the former usually graduate from two-year programs
(associate degrees) instead of four-year nursing programs (bachelor’s
degrees in nursing) like the latter must complete. Because of this, being
an RPN is considered a great choice for someone who wants to work
as a nurse but doesn’t have the time or resources to commit to an
extended academic program in a university or other post-secondary
institution.
Regardless of their academic level or designation, RPNs are often
subjected to the same expectations as RNs when it comes to patient
care, dedication, patience, empathy, respectfulness, and other soft and
hard skills. This is because RPNs spend most of their time with patients
and they don’t always know or mind about the level of nursing
experience that their